The invention relates to a structural component construction, a structural component for a gas turbine and a method for manufacturing a structural component of a gas turbine by means of metal injection molding.
It is known from DE 10 2012 206 087 A1 to manufacture a structural component of an aircraft engine by means of metal injection molding. Here, at first a green body component of the structural component that is to be manufactured is made of a metal powder composition which is suitable for injection molding and contains metal powder mixed with a binder. Subsequently, the green body is debound, thus resulting in the creation of a brown body of the structural component. The brown body is sintered, wherein a shrinkage of the brown body occurs because the particles of the metal powder composition are compacted during the sintering process.
The manufacture of a structural component of an aircraft engine by means of metal injection molding can be performed in a comparatively cost-effective manner, which is why the further development of methods based on metal injection molding is of interest. However, when it comes to aviation, the use of powder-metallurgical injection molding methods has not yet become established on a larger scale. One problem that arises during the manufacture of a structural component of an aircraft engine by means of a metal powder injection molding process is that there are states occurring in the course of the sintering process in which the shape of the structural component becomes so soft and unstable that the structural component may be warped, for example due to its own weight or as a result of a gas flow and other influences, thus changing its shape in a way that may diverge from the design specifications. Consequently, there is a need for the further improvement of powder-metallurgical injection molding with respect to its suitability for the manufacturing technology in the field of aviation.